under the passenger seat AUDI A7 2017 Owner´s Manual

Seats and storage
_& WARNING
-Do not put any hot beverages in the cup
holder while the vehicle is moving. Hot bev­
erages could spill, which can cause injury.
- Do not use any breakable beverage contain­
ers (for example, made out of glass or por ­
celain) . You could be injured by them in the
event of an accident.
0 Note
Beverage containers in the cup holders should
always have a lid . If not, beverages could spill
and cause damage to vehicle equipment, such
electronics or seat covers .
Cooled glove compartment
Applies to: veh icles with cooled glove compartment
The cooled glove compartment only functions
when the
AIC system is switched on.
Fig. 59 Glove compar tm ent: s witch in g coo ling mode on/
off
~ Turn the knob@ counter-clockwise to switch
the cooling on . The symbols on the knob indi­
cate the correct position.
~ Turn the knob @ clockwise to switch the cool-
ing off .
The glove compartment cooling mode only func­
tions when the vehicle A/C system is switched on .
If the heating is switched on, switching the glove
compartment cooling mode off is recommended.
Other storage compartments
You will find a range of storage compartments
and holders at different locations in the vehicle.
54
- Compartments in the doors
-Compartment in the glove compartment
(cooled*) . The glove compartment can be
locked using the mechanical key.
- Glasses holder* in the headliner (near the rear­
view mirror)
- Storage compartment under the front center
armrest*
- Compartments* on the backrests of the front
seats
- Garment hooks on the sides of the pillars in the
rear of the vehicle and in the rear grab handles
- Compartment in the rear center armrest
- Bag hooks in the luggage compartment
_& WARNING
-To reduce the risk of personal injury in an
accident or sudden stop, always keep the
glove compartment closed while driving.
- Always keep the lid of the compartment for
(sun)glasses* closed while driving to reduce
the risk of injury during a sudden braking
maneuver or in the event of an accident .
- Any articles of clothing that you have hung
up must not interfere with the driver's view.
The coat hooks are designed only for light­
weight clothing. Never hang any clothing
with hard, pointed or heavy objects in the
pockets on the coat hooks. During sudden
braking or in an accident -especially if the
airbag is deployed -these objects could in ­
jure any passengers inside the vehicle .
- Read and follow all WARNINGS
c::> page 168, Important safety instructions
on the side airbag system.
- Hang clothes in such a way that they do not
impair the driver 's vision .
-
-The coat hooks must only be used for light­
weight clothing. Do not leave any heavy or
sharp edged objects in the pockets which
may interfere with the side curtain airbag
deployment and can cause personal injury in
a crash.
- Do not use coat hangers for hanging cloth­
ing on the coat hooks as this can interfere
with proper deployment of the side curtain
airbags in an accident.

Driving safety
• Make sure to use the right child restraint cor­
rectly to protect children
c::> page 172, Child
saf ety .
• Sit properly in your seat and make sure that
your passengers do the same
c::> page 48, Sea ts
and storage.
• Fasten your safety belt and wear it properly . Al­
so instruct your passengers to fasten their safe­
ty belts properly
c::> page 140 .
What impairs driving safety?
Safe driving is directly related to the condition of
the vehicle, the driver as well as the driver 's abili­
ty to concentrate on the road without being dis­
tracted .
The driver is responsible for the safety of the ve­
hicle and all of its occupants. If your ability to
drive is impaired, safety risks for everybody in the
veh icle increase and you also become a hazard to
everyone else on the road
c::> ,&. . Therefore :
• Do not let yourself be distracted by passengers
or by using a cellular telephone .
• NEVER drive when your dr iv ing ability is im ­
pa ired (by medications, alcohol, drugs, etc .).
• Observ e all traffic laws, rules of the road and
speed limits and plain common sense .
• ALWAYS adjust your speed to road, traffic and
weather conditions .
• Take frequent breaks on long trips . Do not drive
for more than two hours at a stretch .
• Do NOT drive when you are tired, under pres­
sure or when you are stressed .
.&, WARNING
Impaired driving safety increases the risk of
serious personal injury and death whenever a
vehicle is being used.
130
.
Correct passenger
seating positions
Proper seating position for the driver
The proper driver seating position is important
for safe, relaxed driving.
Fig. 142 Correct seating pos it ion
For your own safety and to reduce the risk of in­
jury in the event of an accident, we recommend
that you adjust the driver's seat to the following position :
• Adjust the driver's seat so that you can easily
push the pedals all the way to the floor while
keeping your knee(s) slightly bent
c:> .&_ .
• Adjust the angle of the seatback so that it is in
an upright position so that your back comes in
full contact with it when you dr ive.
• Adjust the steering wheel so that there is a d is­
tance of at least 10 inches (25 cm) between the
steering wheel and your breast bone
r::!) fig. 142.
If not possible, see your authorized Audi deal­
e rship about adaptive equipment.
• Adjust the steering wheel so that the steering
wheel and airbag cover points at your chest and
not at your face .
• Grasp the top of the steering wheel with your
elbow(s) slightly bent.
• For adjustable head restraints: Adjust the head
restraint so the upper edge is as even as possi­
ble with the top of your head. If that is not pos ­
sible, try to adjust the head restraint so that it
is as close to this position as possible. Move the
head restraint so that it is as close to the back
of the head as possible .
• Fasten and wear safety belts correctly
c::> page 143 . .,.

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\.J ' -Therefore, always wear your safety belts and
make sure that everybody in your vehicle is
properly restrained.
- Always hold the steering wheel with both
hands on the outside of the steering wheel
rim at the 9:00 o'clock and 3:00 o'clock po­
sitions to help reduce the risk of personal in­
jury if the driver's airbag inflates .
- Never hold the steering wheel at the 12
o'clock position or with your hands any­
where inside the steering wheel or on the steering wheel hub. Holding the steering
wheel the wrong way increases the risk of
severe injury to the arms, hands, and head if
the driver airbag deploys.
& WARNING
Objects between you and the airbag will in ­
crease the risk of injury in a crash by interfer­
ing with the way the airbag unfolds and/or by
being pushed into you as the airbag inflates.
- Always make sure nothing is in the front air-
-
bag deployment zone that could be struck
by the airbag when it inflates.
- Objects in the zone of a deploying airbag
can become projectiles when the airbag de­
ploys and cause serious personal injury.
- Never hold things in your hands or on your
lap when the vehicle is in use.
- Never place accessories or other objects
(such as cup holders, telephone brackets,
note pads, navigation systems, or things
that are large, heavy, or bulky) on the doors;
never attach then to the doors or the wind­
shield; never place them over or near or at­
tach them to the area marked ,,AIRBAG" on
the steering wheel, instrument panel or the seat backrests; never place them between
these areas and you or any other person in
the vehicle .
- Never attach objects to the windshield
above the passenger front airbag, such as
accessory GPS navigation units or music
players. Such objects could cause serious in­
jury in a collision, especially when the air­ bags inflate .
Airbag system
-Never recline the front passenger seat to
transport objects. Items can also move into
the deployment area of the side airbags or
the front airbag during breaking or in a sud­
den maneuver. Objects near the airbags can
fly dangerously through the passenger com­
partment and cause injury, particularly
when the seat is reclined and the airbags in­
flate.
& WARNING
= -
A person on the front passenger seat, espe­
cially infants and small children, will receive
serious injuries and can even be killed by be­ ing too close to the airbag when it inflates.
- Although the Advanced Airbag System in
your vehicle is designed to turn off the front
passenger airbag if an infant or a small child
is on the front passenger seat, nobody can
absolutely guarantee that deployment un­
der these special conditions is impossible in
all conceivable situations that may happen
during the useful life of your vehicle.
= The Advanced Airbag System can deploy in
accordance with the .,low risk" opt ion for 3-
and 6-year-old children under the U.S. Fed­
eral Standard if a child with electrical capac­ itance greater than the combined capaci­
tance of a typical one-year old infant re­
strained in one of the forward facing or rear­
ward-facing child seats with which your ve­
hicle was certified is on the front passenger
seat and the other conditions for airbag de­
ployment are met.
- Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seat ing pos ition.
- For their own safety, all children, especially
12 years and younger, should always ride in
the back properly restrained for their age
and size.
Advanced front airbag system
Your vehicle is equipped with a front Advanced
Airbag System in compliance with United States
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208, as
well as Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard ..,.
153

Airbag syste m
switched on and turns the airbag indicator light
on when a malfunction in the one of the system
components is detected ¢
page 160. Because
the front passenger seat contains important
parts of the Advanced Airbag System, you must
take care to prevent it from being damaged .
Damage to the seat may prevent the Advanced
A irbag System for the front passenger seat from
doi ng its job in a c rash.
The front Ad vanced Airb ag Sy stem con sis ts
of the following:
- Crash sensors in the front of the vehicle that
measure vehicle acceleration/decelerat ion to
provide info rmation to the Advanced Airbag
System about t he severity of the crash.
- An electron ic control un it, with integrated
c rash sensors fo r front and side impacts. The
contro l unit "decides" whethe r to fire the front
airbags based on the information received from
the crash sensors . The control unit a lso "de ­
cides" whether the safety be lt pretensioners
shou ld be activated.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas generator and
control valve for the driver ins ide the steer ing
wheel hub.
- An Advanced Airbag with gas gene rator and
control valve inside the instrument pane l for
the front passenger.
- A capacitive passenger detect ion system under­
neath the front passenger seat cover. This sys­
tem measures the electrical capac itance of the
person in the seat . T he information registe red
is sent continuous ly to the e lectron ic cont rol
unit to regula te deployment of the front Ad­
vanced Airbag on the passenge r si de.
- An airbag monitoring system and indicator
l igh t in the inst rumen t cluster¢
page 160.
- A sensor in each front seat registers the dis­
tance between the respect ive seat and the
stee ring wheel or instr ume nt pane l. The infor­
ma tion reg istered is sent contin uously to the
electronic control un it to regulate deployment
of the front Advanced Ai rbags.
- The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lig ht comes on
and stays on in the center of the instrument
panel ¢
page 160, fig. 158 and tells you when
156
the front Advanced Airbag on the passenger
side has been turned
off.
-A sensor in the safety be lt latch for the driver
and for the front seat passenger that senses
whether that safety belt is latched or not and transmits this information to the electronic
control un it.
A WARNING
Damage to the front passenger seat can pre­
vent the front airbag from work ing properly.
- Improper repair or disassembly of the front
passenger and driver seat will prevent the
Advanced A irbag Sys tem from f unction ing
proper ly.
- Repairs to the front passenger seat must be
performed by qualified and prope rly train ed
wo rkshop personne l.
- Never remove the front passenger or driver
seat from the vehicle .
- Never remove the upholstery from the front
passenger sea t.
- Never d isassemble or remove parts from the
seat or disconnect w ires from
it.
- Never carry sharp objects in your pockets or
put them on the seat . The capacit ive pas ­
senger de tect io n mat in the front passenger
seat will not function p roperly if it is punc­
tured.
- Never car ry things on your lap or carry ob­
jects on the front passenge r seat. Such ob­
jects ca n influen ce the capaci tan ce regis­
t ered by the capaci tive passenger detection
sys tem, so tha t incorrect in format ion is pro ­
vided to the airbag control unit.
- Never store i tems under the front passenger
seat. Parts of the Advanced Airbag System
under the passenger seat could be dam­
aged, preventing them and the airbag sys­
tem from working properly.
- Never p lace seat covers or replacement up­
holstery that have not been specifically ap­ proved by Audi on the front seats.
- Seat covers can prevent the Advanced A ir­
bag System from recogni zing child re­
straints or occupants on the front passenger
seat and prevent the side airbag in the seat
backrest from deploying prope rly .

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\.J ' -If a seat heater has been retrofitted or oth­
erwise added to the front passenger seat,
never install any child restraint system on
this seat.
- Never use cushions, pillows, blankets, or
similar items on the front passenger seat.
The additional layers prevent the capacitive
passenger detection system from accurately
measuring the ca pacita nee of the child safe­
ty seat and/or the person on the seat and
thus keep the Advanced Airbag System from
working properly.
- Never place or use any electrical device
(such as a laptop, CD player, electronic
games device, power inverter or seat heater
for child seats) on the front passenger seat if the device is connected to the 12-volt
socket or the cigarette lighter socket. Such
devices can influence the capacitance regis­
tered by the capacitive passenger detection system, so that incorrect information is pro­
vided to the airbag control unit .
- If you must use a child restraint on the front
passenger seat and the child restraint man­
ufacturer's instructions require the use of a
towel, foam cushion or something else to properly position the child restraint, make
certain that the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on whenever the
child restraint is installed on the front pas­
senger seat.
-If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not come on and stay on, immediately in­
stall child restraint in a rear seating position
and have the airbag system inspected by
your Audi dealer.
.&_ WARNING
If the front passenger seat gets wet, dry it im­
mediately.
- If liquid soaks into the front passenger seat,
this can keep the airbag system from work­
ing properly and may, for instance, deacti­
vate the passenger frontal airbag.
If this
happens, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light will come on and stay on together with
the airbag indicator light
fl (USA models) I
Airbag system
E,I (Canada models) in the instrument clus­
ter.
- If liquid is pooled on the seat, but has not
soaked in, this may also keep the airbag sys­
tem from working properly and cause the
passenger frontal airbag to be enabled
(turned on), even though there is a properly
installed child restraint system on the seat.
Wet towels or other wet things on the seat
cushion can have the same effect.
If the
front passenger frontal airbag is turned on,
the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light light
will go out.
How the Advanced Airbag System
components work together
The front Advanced Airbag System and the side
airbags supplement the protection offered by the
front three-point safety belts with pretensioners
and load limiters and the adjustable head re­
straints* to help reduce the risk of injury in a
wide range of accident and crash situations. Be
sure to read the important information about
safety and heed the WARNINGS in this chapter.
Deployment of the Adv a need Airbag System and
the activation of the safety belt pretensioners de­
pend on the deceleration measured by the crash
sensors and registered by the electronic control
unit. Crash severity depends on speed and decel­
eration as well as the mass and stiffness of the
vehicle or object involved in the crash.
On the passenger side, regardless of safety belt
use, the front passenger frontal airbag will be
turned off if the electrical capacitance measured by the capacitive passenger detection system on
the front passenger seat is less than the amount
programmed in the electronic control unit . The
front passenger frontal airbag will also be turned off if the capacitance measured by the system for
the front passenger seat equals that of an infant of about one year of age in one of the child seats
that was used to certify the Advanced Airbag Sys­
tem under Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard
208. The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light comes
on and stays on to tell you when the front Ad­
vanced Airbag System on the passenger side has been turned
offc::;,page 160 . Ill>-
157

Airbag system
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG light still does
not come on ...
If the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light still does
not come on and does not stay on continuously
(when the ignition is switched on),
- take the child restraint off the front passenger
seat and install it properly at one of the rear
seat positions. Have the airbag system inspect­
ed by your Audi dealer immediately .
- move the chi ld to a rear seat position and make
sure that the child is properly restrained in a
child restraint that is appropriate for its size
and age .
The PASSENGER AIR BAG light should NOT
come on ...
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light should NOT
come on when the ignition is on and an adult is
sitting in a proper seating position on the front
passenger seat. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF
light comes on and stays on or flashes for about
S seconds while driving, under these circumstan­
ces, make s ure that:
- the adult on the front passenger seat is proper­
ly seated on the center of the seat cushion with
his or her back up against the backrest and the
backres t is not recl ined,
- the adu lt is not taking weight off the seat by
holding on to the passenger assist handle
above the front passenger door or supporting
their weight on the armrest,
- the safety belt is being properly worn and that
there is not a lot of slack in the safety belt web­
bing,
- there are no aftermarket seat covers or cush­
ions or other things (such as blankets) on the
front passenger seat that might cause the ca­
pacitive passenger detection system to miscal­
culate electrical capacitance.
Important safety instructions on
monitoring the Advanced Airbag System
A WARNING
- If the status of the Adv a need Airbag System
has changed while the vehicle is moving, the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light blinks for
162
about S seconds to catch the driver's atten­
tion. If this happens, always stop as soon as
it is safe to do so and check the steps descri­
bed above .
- If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF light does
not go off when an adult who is not very
small is sitting on the front passenger seat
after taking the steps described above, make sure the adult is properly seated and
restrained at one of the rear seating posi­
tions. Have the airbag system inspected by
your authorized Audi dealer befo re trans­
porting anyone on the front passenger seat.
A WARNING
An airbag system that is not functioning prop­
erly cannot provide supplemental protection in a fronta l crash.
- If the airbag indicator light~
page 17
comes when the vehicle is being used, have
the system inspected immediately by your
authorized Audi dealer.
It is possible that
the airbag will inflate when it is not sup­
posed to, or wi ll not inflate when it should.
A WARNING
If the front airbag inflates, a ch ild without a
chi ld restraint, or in a rearward-facing child
safety seat, or in a forward-fac ing ch ild re­
straint that has not been properly insta lled
will be seriously injured and can be killed.
- Even though you r vehicle is equipped with
an Advanced A irbag System, make certain
that a ll children, especially 12 years and
younger, always ride on the back seat prop­
erly restrained for their age and size.
-Always install forward or rear-facing child seats on the rear seat -even with an Ad­
vanced Airbag System.
- If you must install a rearward-facing child
seat on the front passenger seat because of
except ional circumstances and the
PASSEN·
GER AIR BAG OFF
light does not appear and
stay on, immediately install the rear-facing
child seat in a rear seat ing position and have
the airbag system inspected by your Audi
dea le r.
~

Airbag syste m
must be performed by qualified workshops
only. Make sure that any airbag service ac­
tion is entered in your Aud i Warranty
&
Maintena nce booklet under AIRBAG RE­
PLACEMENT RECORD.
- For safety reasons in severe accidents, the
alternator and starter are separated from
the vehicle battery with a pyrotechn ic circuit
in terrupter.
- Work on the pyrotechnic circuit interrupt­
er must only be performed by a qualified
technicians who have the experience, in­
formation and special tools necessary to
perform the work safely.
- If the vehicle or the circuit interrupter is
scrapped, all applicab le safety precautions
must be followed .
@ For the sake of the environment
Undeployed airbag modu les and pretension ­
ers might be classified as Perch lorate Materi­
al -special handling may apply, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlo­ rate . When the veh icle o r parts of the re­
stra int system including airbag modules and
safety belts w it h pretensioners are scrapped,
all applicable laws and regu lations must be
observed. Your authorized Audi dealer is fa­
m iliar with these requirements and we recom ­
mend that you have your dealer perform this
serv ice for you.
Other things that can affect Advanced
Airbag performance
Changing the vehicle's suspension system can
change the way that the Advanced A irbag System
pe rforms in a crash. For e xamp le, using t ire -r im
comb inations no t approved by Audi, lowering t he
veh icle, chang ing the stiffness o f the suspe nsio n,
i n cluding the springs, suspension struts, shock
absorbers etc . can change the forces that are
measured by the airbag sensors and sent to the
electronic contro l unit . Some suspens ion changes
can, for example, increase the force levels meas­
ured by the sensors and make the airbag system
deploy in c rashes in w hich it would not deploy if
the changes had not been made. Other ki nds of
164
changes may reduce the force levels measured by
the sensors and prevent the airbag from deploy­
i ng when it should .
_& WARNING
Changing the vehicle's suspension including
use of unapproved tire-rim comb inations can
change Advanced Airbag performance and in­
crease the r isk of serious personal injury in a
crash .
- Never install suspension components that do not have the same performance charac­
ter istics as the components origina lly instal­
led on your vehicle.
- Never use tire-r im combinations that have
not been approved by Aud i.
Knee airbags
Description of knee airbags
Applies to : vehicles with knee airbags
The knee airbag system can provide supplemen­
tal protection to properly restrained front seat
occupants .
Fig . 15 9 Driver 's knee a irbag
The driver knee airbag is in the instrument panel
u nderneath the s teer ing whee l¢
fig. 159, the
airbag fo r the passenger is at about the same
height in the i nstr ument panel underneath the
glove compa rtment.
The knee airbag offers add itiona l protect ion to
the d river's and passenge r's knees and uppe r and
l ower thigh areas a nd sup plements the p rotec­
t ion prov ided by the safety belts .
If the front airbags deploy, the knee a irbags also
deploy in fron tal coll is ions when t he deployment ..,_

Child safety
Child safety
Important information
Introduction
The rear seat is generally the safest place in a
collision .
The physical principles of what happens when
your vehicle is in a crash apply also to children
¢ page 141, What happens to occupants not
wearing safety belts? .
But unlike adults and
teenagers, their muscles and bones are not fully
developed. In many respects children are at
g reater r isk of serious injury in crashes than
adults .
Because children's bodies are not fully devel­
oped, they require restraint systems especially
des igned for their size, weight, and body struc­
ture. Many countries and all states of the United
States and provinces of Canada have laws requir­
ing the use of approved child restraint systems
for infants and small children .
I n a frontal crash at a speed of 20-35 mph
(30-56 km/h) the forces acting on a 13 -pound
(6 kg) infant will be more than 20 times the
weight of the child. This means the weight of the child would suddenly be more than 260 pounds
(120 kg) . Under these conditions, only an appro­
priate child restraint properly used can reduce
the risk of serious injury . Child restra ints, like
adu lt safety belts, must be used properly to be
effect ive. Used improperly, they can increase the
risk of serious injury in an acc ident.
All ch ildren, especially those 12 years and young­
er must always ride in the back seat properly re­
stra ined for their age and size. If you must insta ll
a child restraint on the front passenger seat in
exceptional circumstances, be sure to read and
heed the important information and warnings
¢
page 149. Infants and other children who are
properly restrained in an appropriate child re­
straint that is for their si ze and age can benefit
from the protection that supplemental side air­
bags provide in some kinds of crashes .
For more information please see information
provided by the:
172
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), currently at: http :/ /www.safe­
rcar.gov (for the USA)
- Transport Canada Information Centre, current-
ly at: http://www.tc.gc.ca (for Canada)
Consult the child safety seat manufacturer's in­
structions in order to be sure the seat is right fo r
your chi ld's size ¢
page 176, Important safety
instructions for using child safety seats .
Please
be sure to read and heed all of the important in­
formation and WARNINGS about child safety,
Advanced Airbags, and the installation of child restra ints in this chapter .
There is a lot you need to know about the Ad­
vanced Airbags in your vehicle and how they work
when infants and children in child restraints are on the front passenger seat . Because of the large
amount of important informat ion , we cannot re­
peat it all here. We urge you to read the detailed
i nformation in this owner's manual about airbags
and the Advanced Airbag System in your vehicle
and the very important information about trans­
porting children on the front passenger seat.
Please be sure to heed the WARNINGS -they are
extremely important for your safety and the safe­
ty of your passengers, especially infants and
small children .
A WARNING
-Accident statistics have shown that children
are generally safer in the rear seat area than
in the front seat ing pos ition. Always restrain
any child age 12 and under in the rear.
-All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restra ined prope rly whenever rid ing
in a vehicle. An un restrained or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact.
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is a lso at greater risk of injury or death
through contact w ith an inflating airbag.
-A suitable ch ild restraint properly installed
and used at one of the rear seating positions
provides the highest degree of protect ion
for infants and small children in most acc i­
dent situat ions.

Child safety
-Take the child restraint off the front passen­
ger seat and install it properly at one of the
rear seat positions if the
PASSENGER AIR
BAG OFF
light does not stay on.
- Have the airbag system inspected by your
authorized Audi dealer immediately.
(D Tips
The child seats listed in categories A to C have
been statically tested by Audi only for the Ad­
vanced Airbag function.
Important safety instructions for using
child safety seats
Correct use of child safety seats substantially re­
duces the risk of injury in an accident!
As the driver, you are responsible for the safety
of everybody in the vehicle, especially children:
.,. Always use the right child safety seat for each
child and always use it properly
c::> page 178.
.,. Always carefully follow the child safety seat
manufacturer's instructions on how to route
the safety belt properly through the child safe­
ty seat .
.,. When using the vehicle safety belt to install a
child safety seat , you must first activate the
convertible locking retractor on the safety belt
to prevent the child safety seat from moving
c::> page 183.
.,. Push the child safety seat down with your full
weight to get the safety belt really tight so that
the seat cannot move forward or sideways
more than one inch (2.5 cm).
.,. Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c::> page 178 .
Always remember: Even though your vehicle is
equipped with an Advanced Airbag system, all
children, especially those 12 years and younger,
should always ride in the back seat properly re­
strained for their age and size.
.&, WARNING
Not using a child safety seat, using the wrong
child safety seat or improperly installing a
176
child restraint increases the risk of serious
personal injury and death.
- All vehicle occupants and especially children
must be restrained properly whenever riding
in a vehicle. An unrestrained or improperly
restrained child could be injured by striking
the interior or by being ejected from the ve­
hicle during a sudden maneuver or impact .
An unrestrained or improperly restrained
child is also at greater risk of injury or death
through contact with an inflating airbag.
- Commercially available child safety seats
are required to comply with U.S. Federal
Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 213
(in Canada CMVSS 213).
- When buying a child restraint, select one
that fits your child and the vehicle .
- Only use child restraint systems that fully
contact the flat portion of the seat cush­ ion. The child restraint must not tip or
lean to either side . Audi does not recom­
mend using child safety seats that rest on
legs or tube-like frames. They do not pro­
vide adequate contact with the seat.
- Always heed all legal requirements per­
taining to the installation and use of child
safety seats and carefully follow the in­
structions provided by the manufacturer
of the seat you are using.
- Never allow children under 57 inches
(1.45 meters) to wear a normal safety belt .
They must always be restrained by a proper
child restraint system. Otherwise, they
could sustain injuries to the abdomen and
neck areas during sudden braking maneu­
vers or accidents .
- Never let more than one child occupy a child
safety seat.
- Never let babies or older children ride in a
vehicle while sitting on the lap of another
passenger .
- Holding a child in your arms is never a sub­
stitute for a child restraint system .
- The strongest person could not hold the
child with the forces that exist in an acci­
dent. The child will strike the interior of
the vehicle and can also be struck by the
passenger.

Child safety
Booster seats and safety belts
Properly used booster seats can help protect
children weighing between about 40 lbs . and 80
lbs. (18 kg and 36 kg) who are less than 4
ft. 9
in. (57 inches/1.45 meters) tall .
Fig. 169 Rear seat: ch ild proper ly restrained in a booster
seat
The vehicle's safety belts alone will not fit most
children until they are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 in­
ches/1.45 meters) tall and weigh about 80 lbs.
(36 kg). Booster seats raise these chi ld ren up so
that the safety belt will pass properly
over the
stronger parts of their bodies and the safety belt
can help protect them in a crash.
• Do not use the convertible locking retractor
when using the vehicle's safety belt to restrain
a chi ld on a booster seat.
• The shoulder be lt must lie as close to the cen­
ter of the child's collar bone as possible and
must lie flat and snug on the upper body. It
must never lie across the throat or neck. The
lap belt must lie across the pelv is and never
across the stomach or abdomen . Make sure the
belt lies flat and snug. Pull on the belt to tight­
en if necessary .
• If you must transport an older child in a boos­
te r seat on the front passenger seat, you can
use the safety belt height adjustment to help
adjust the shoulder portion properly .
• Secure unused safety belts on the rear seat
c> page 178.
Children up to at least 8 years old (over 40 lbs or
18 kg) are best protected in child safety seats de­
signed for their age and weight. Experts say that
the skeletal structure, particularly the pelvis, of
these children is not fully developed, and they
182
must not use the vehicle safety belts without a
suitable child restraint .
It is usually best to put these children in appro­
priate booste r seats. Be sure the booster seat
meets all applicab le safety standards.
Booster seats raise the seating position of the
child and reposition both the lap and shoulder
parts of the safety belt so that they pass across
the child's body in the right places. The routing of
the be lt
over the chi ld's body is very important
for the child's protection, whether or not a boos­
ter seat is used. Children age 12 and under m ust
always ride in the rear seat.
Children who are at least 4
ft. 9 in. (57 inches/
1.45 meters) ta ll can generally use the vehicle 's
three point lap and shoulder belts. Never use the
lap belt portion of the vehicle's safety belt alone
to restrain any child, regard less of how big the
c hi ld is. Always remember that children do not
have the p ronounced pelvic structure required for
the proper function of lap belt portion of the
ve­
hicle's three point lap and shoulder belts. The
c hi ld's safety absolutely requ ires that a lap belt
portion of the safety belt be fastened snugly and
as low as possible around the pe lvis. Never let
the lap belt portion of the safety belt pass over
the child's stomach or abdomen.
In a crash, airbags must inflate within a blink of
an eye and with considerab le force . In order to do
i ts job, the airbag needs room to inflate so that it
will be there to protect the occupant as the occu­
pant
moves forward into the airbag.
A ve hicle occupant who is out of position and too
close to the a irbag gets in the way of an inflating
airbag. When an occupant is too close, he or she
will be struck violently and will receive serious or
possibly even fatal injury .
In order for the a irbag to offer protection, it is
important that all vehicle occupants, especially
any ch ildren, who must be in the front seat be­
cause of exceptional c ircumstances, be properly
re stra ined and as far away from the a irbag as
possible. By keeping room between the child's .,..